Judge who praised 'brave' burglar reprimanded

A judge who provoked outrage when he praised a “courageous” burglar has been
reprimanded after an official inquiry found his comments were offensive to
victims and damaged public confidence in the justice system.

Judge BowersPhoto: NORTH PICTURES

By Wesley Johnson, Home Affairs Correspondent

2:13PM GMT 04 Dec 2012

Judge Peter Bowers said he was going to “take a chance” on burglar Richard Rochford, who raided three homes in five days, telling him: "It takes a huge amount of courage, as far as I can see, for somebody to burgle somebody's house.”

His comments caused an outcry, with Prime Minister David Cameron saying that burglars were not brave but "cowards" and their crimes were "hateful".

The Lord Chancellor Chris Grayling and the Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge “considered his comments to have damaged public confidence in the judicial process”, a spokesman for the Office for Judicial Complaints said.

They believed the use of the word courage was a "serious error of judgment" and "offensive" to those who have been victims of a burglary, according to a letter from the office to one of the complainants, radio presenter Nick Ferrari.

"Whilst His Honour Judge (HHJ) Bowers regrets his use of the word 'courage' the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice believe that this was a serious error of judgment and offensive to those who have been victims of a burglary,” the letter said.

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"They also believe that HHJ Bowers' conduct has been damaging to the respect of the judicial process.

“For this reason, HHJ Bowers has been issued with a formal reprimand."

The inquiry was launched after Mr Ferrari and members of the public contacted the office following the judge’s comments in the case at Teesside Crown Court in September.

Giving Rochford, 26, from Redcar, North Yorks, a suspended 12–month term, the judge said: "It takes a huge amount of courage, as far as I can see, for somebody to burgle somebody's house. I wouldn't have the nerve.

“I'm going to take a chance on you."

The judge also claimed jail would not do much good in this case and ordered Rochford to complete a two–year supervision order with drug rehabilitation and 200 hours' unpaid work. He was also banned from driving for a year.

Mr Ferrari, who presents the LBC 97.3 breakfast show, complained after thousands of listeners vented their anger at the judge's remarks.

He said: "These comments appear to praise this individual even though he was found guilty of his crime. In addition to this the sentence seems to reward this man for his behaviour rather than punish.

"He could have been jailed for two-and-a-half years but instead he was given a suspended 12-month jail sentence.

"The comment and the sentence has upset and angered my listeners, many of whom have been victims of burglaries."

David Hines, chairman of the National Victims' Association, added that the “outrageous” judge’s comments "let victims down".

“I’m very pleased to see that common sense has prevailed,” he said.

“I hope he has learned his lesson now and does not make stupid remarks again in the future.

“But I think there’s a lot more work to be done to get public confidence back in the justice system.”